myself how the stones have become active, but so long as we can reach the base we can destroy it."
"So what are we waiting for?" Fred chimed in. He sat up in the saddle and coughed. "Let's get this done and get away from that smell."
Hywel chuckled. "It's very fortunate I don't have a nose for you're covered in marsh muck."
Fred glanced down at himself and groaned. His clothes were stained with bog from his fall. "Looks like I'll be taking that bath like Pat wanted."
Ned chuckled and mounted his horse. "She'll be grateful," he pointed out.
They turned their steeds toward the town, but Hywel hesitated. "I won't be welcome there," he reminded them. "The Stars in there have been making a mess of the houses and not lighting the forges."
Ned opened his cloak. "Then you'll need to go into here."
Hywel shuddered. "Perhaps I'll risk it and say I'm your servant."
Ned laughed and closed his cloak. "A good plan." He spurred on his horse toward the town with Fred and Hywel on either side of him, and soon he turned to Fred with a curious expression. "How did you manage to escape the city and the Stars? It couldn't have been easy."
"We flew out of the city and into the bog. The trees were bothering me, so I shot fireballs at them, but that still didn't work because they kept catching so I flew up and surrounded them with barrier magic," Fred replied.
Ned raised an eyebrow. "A fireball? How very peculiar."
Fred froze. Ned saying something was peculiar was never a good sign. "What's peculiar about tossing out some fireballs?"
"Well, the fact that they're balls, and they're made of fire," Ned replied.
Fred blinked. "How's that special? Can't every castor do it?" he asked his master.
Ned leaned in and gave the young man a close scrutiny. "Each castor has their own unique ability. Any castor can create fire, but fireballs happen to be my specialty."
"Maybe I picked it up from being your apprentice?" Fred guessed.
Ned looked ahead and his mouth was set in a firm line. "Perhaps."
Ned quickened their speed and they raced toward the serene city. Inside the city was a different atmosphere.
CHAPTER 13
The other group was having their own troubles in Dirth. They passed through the farmland and arrived safely at one of the entrances to the city, where they found their way barred by a closed gate. Two dozen dwarves stood atop the defensive wall, and a tall one looked down at the newcomers with a sneer on his face. "Whadda ya be wanting here?" he called down to them.
"We want the gate up," Canto yelled back.
"Not until ya tell me what yer wanting here," the guard insisted.
Canto growled. "We've been through this already. If we were a threat we couldn't have been let through the pass."
The guard leader scowled and conferred with the others. After a moment he gave a signal and the gate was opened for them.
Pat sidled up beside Canto as they made their way under the archway. "What if we'd lied about getting through the pass?"
Canto glanced over his shoulder with a scowl. "Then the fools wouldn't have known the difference. The king's sent all the smart ones to the borders in the hopes of keeping threats as far from the stone as possible."
The city inside the walls was a mess of wooden houses with thatched roofs. Each building had been built at different angles than the one beside it so that no block was square and no corner was a simple crossroad. Every barely-definable street corner had a blacksmith's shop, and the market place was a mess of mud and foul-smelling food. Dwarves strolled to and fro, bartering, talking, and drinking until they couldn't stand. Then they would go back for another round of beers. They wore rough leather clothing sewn from animal skin with fur cuffs and necks. The men sported beards, the women sported beards, and Pat was surprised to see the children sported clean-shaven faces. The feet of the kids were covered in stretched hides, but most adults wore leather boots tied together with sinew from beasts.
"So what are we waiting for?" Fred chimed in. He sat up in the saddle and coughed. "Let's get this done and get away from that smell."
Hywel chuckled. "It's very fortunate I don't have a nose for you're covered in marsh muck."
Fred glanced down at himself and groaned. His clothes were stained with bog from his fall. "Looks like I'll be taking that bath like Pat wanted."
Ned chuckled and mounted his horse. "She'll be grateful," he pointed out.
They turned their steeds toward the town, but Hywel hesitated. "I won't be welcome there," he reminded them. "The Stars in there have been making a mess of the houses and not lighting the forges."
Ned opened his cloak. "Then you'll need to go into here."
Hywel shuddered. "Perhaps I'll risk it and say I'm your servant."
Ned laughed and closed his cloak. "A good plan." He spurred on his horse toward the town with Fred and Hywel on either side of him, and soon he turned to Fred with a curious expression. "How did you manage to escape the city and the Stars? It couldn't have been easy."
"We flew out of the city and into the bog. The trees were bothering me, so I shot fireballs at them, but that still didn't work because they kept catching so I flew up and surrounded them with barrier magic," Fred replied.
Ned raised an eyebrow. "A fireball? How very peculiar."
Fred froze. Ned saying something was peculiar was never a good sign. "What's peculiar about tossing out some fireballs?"
"Well, the fact that they're balls, and they're made of fire," Ned replied.
Fred blinked. "How's that special? Can't every castor do it?" he asked his master.
Ned leaned in and gave the young man a close scrutiny. "Each castor has their own unique ability. Any castor can create fire, but fireballs happen to be my specialty."
"Maybe I picked it up from being your apprentice?" Fred guessed.
Ned looked ahead and his mouth was set in a firm line. "Perhaps."
Ned quickened their speed and they raced toward the serene city. Inside the city was a different atmosphere.
CHAPTER 13
The other group was having their own troubles in Dirth. They passed through the farmland and arrived safely at one of the entrances to the city, where they found their way barred by a closed gate. Two dozen dwarves stood atop the defensive wall, and a tall one looked down at the newcomers with a sneer on his face. "Whadda ya be wanting here?" he called down to them.
"We want the gate up," Canto yelled back.
"Not until ya tell me what yer wanting here," the guard insisted.
Canto growled. "We've been through this already. If we were a threat we couldn't have been let through the pass."
The guard leader scowled and conferred with the others. After a moment he gave a signal and the gate was opened for them.
Pat sidled up beside Canto as they made their way under the archway. "What if we'd lied about getting through the pass?"
Canto glanced over his shoulder with a scowl. "Then the fools wouldn't have known the difference. The king's sent all the smart ones to the borders in the hopes of keeping threats as far from the stone as possible."
The city inside the walls was a mess of wooden houses with thatched roofs. Each building had been built at different angles than the one beside it so that no block was square and no corner was a simple crossroad. Every barely-definable street corner had a blacksmith's shop, and the market place was a mess of mud and foul-smelling food. Dwarves strolled to and fro, bartering, talking, and drinking until they couldn't stand. Then they would go back for another round of beers. They wore rough leather clothing sewn from animal skin with fur cuffs and necks. The men sported beards, the women sported beards, and Pat was surprised to see the children sported clean-shaven faces. The feet of the kids were covered in stretched hides, but most adults wore leather boots tied together with sinew from beasts.
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